Heddle and harness



July 11, 1961 R. M. STEPHENS HEDDLE AND HARNESS Filled Dec. 5, 1957 ATTORNEYS .4l-1 TEPHENS m N E United States Patent 1 2,991,810 HEDDLE AND HARNESS Roy M. Stephens, Danville, Va., assignor to Dan River Mills, Incorporated, Danville, Va., a corporation of Virginia Filed Dec. 3, 1957, Ser. No. 700,324 3 Claims. (Cl. 139-92) The present invention relates to an improvement in the arrangement and structure of heddles and harnesses for textile looms.

Among the many heddle structures known to those skilled in the art, two of the better known are the duplex heddles, generally in the form disclosed in Kaufmann United States Patent 1,545,904, issued July 14, 1925, and `the drawtex heddles, ygenerally in the form disclosed in Kaufmann UnitedStates Patent 2,047,511, issued July 14, 1936.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a heddle of improved structure having greater utility than either of these prior art heddles. Another object of this invention is to provide an improved harness arrangement including the novel heddles of this invention. Still another object of this invention is to improve weaving conditions at the harnesses and heddles of tex-tile looms to alord maximum air space between adjacent warps to thereby reduce chaing of the yarn caused by harness movements.

Other objects of the invention will be more readily apparent from a study of the attached drawings and the following detailed description of `the invention. It has been found that the heddles and harness of this invention alford many weaving advantages, including a reduction in loom stoppage, greater weaving eliciency, improved quality in the woven fabric in terms of reduced drawbacks, checkouts, mat-up and a better face on the fabric. Obviously, this also results in other advantages in terms of reduced costs and reduced labor in weaving, inspection and fabric repair. The heddles of this invention have exceptionally long life, are easily adjusted and are adaptable to automatic drawing-in machines. The invention resides in the combinations and subcombinations of elements as are more particularly described hereinafter and as illustrated in the attached drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is an end view, partly in elevation and partly in section, showing the new harness arrangement including the new heddles of this invention, and

FIG. 2 is a side elevation view, partly broken to illustrate the same harness shown in FIG. 1.

In the improved form of the invention illustrated in the drawings, a harness indicated generally at includes a pair of steel side members 12 and `14, a wooden top member `16 and a wooden bottom member 18. The harness is provided with suitable heddle bar support members 20 at each end thereof and a plurality of heddle bar support members 22 intermediate its ends. Heddle bars 25-28 are supported on the harness for carrying suitable heddles in the vertical oiset relationship illustrated in the drawings wherein bars 2S and 26 are slightly lower than bars 27 and 28. Alternate heddles indicated generally at 29 and 3-1 are formed of a single at metallic strip, preferably of spring steel. At each end of each heddle 29 and 31 there is a C-shaped heddle bar eye 30 and in the vertical center of each heddle there is the usual warp eye 32. Each heddle 29 and 31 is provided with a widened portion 37 adjacent the heddle bar eyes 30 and a widened portion 33 adjacent the warp eyes while there are narrow intermediate connecting portions to be more fully described hereinafter. In the widened portions adjacent the warp eyes of each heddle, there is a key hole eye identitied as 34 and 35 respectively on alternate heddles 29 and 31. It will be noted that the .key holes 34 and 35 on alternate heddles Patented July 11, 1961 ICC extend in opposite directions for appropriate engagement with a drawing-in machine.

Each of the narrow intermediate connecting portions of each of the heddles 29 and 31 is provided with an oblique portion for offsetting the warp eyes with respect -to the heddle bar eyes. These oblique portions are iden- .tiied at 36 in heddles 29 aud 38 in heddles 311. While only two heddles are illustrated on each bar of heddle bar supports, it will be understood that in actual practice there will be a very large number of heddles on each set of bars with all of the heddles being alternately in the form of heddles 29 and 31 in the drawings. Thus, it will be seen that alternate heddles in each set have their warp eyes laterally oiset in opposite directions thereby to alord additional air space to adjacent warp yarns. It will also be seen that harness 10 is provided with two sets of laterally offset heddles which are further offset in a vertical direction to provide additional air space to -warp yarns. It will also be noted that this additional air space has been provided without sacrice of the benelits of the adaptability of the heddles to use with drawing-in machines and while providing complete freedom of motion of the heddles along the length of the heddle bars. The use of spring steel contributes greatly to both the etliciency and long life of the heddles.

l claim:

1. A heddle comprising a nar-row thin spring steel strip provided with a widened portion at its center and each end, said widened end portions being provided with C-shaped heddle bar eyes and said center widened portion being provided with a Iwarp eye of sutlicient size to permit the loose passage of ya warp thread therethrough but of a size considerably smaller than the size of the widened center portion, said warp eye being at an angle with the plane of said widened center portion, and an eye adapting the heddle for use with a drawing-in machine, said widened center portion extending well beyond said warp eye and said drawing-in machine adapting eye, and said strip, intermediate said widened end and center portions, being provided -`with oblique portions adjacent each widened end portion, said oblique portions extending in a converging direction from their respective widened end portions laterally offsetting lt-he warp eye with respect to the heddle bar eyes, said heddle being for use in a harness having a heddle set comprising an Iupper heddle bar and a lower heddle bar each supported adjacent its ends and intermediate its ends by supports adapted for use with heddles having C-shaped heddle bar eyes to permit unlimited lateral heddle movement intermediate the ends of the bars, and a plurality of said heddles mounted on said bars with said offset of alternate heddles being in opposite directions.

2. In a harness, a heddle set comprising an upper heddle bar and a lower heddle bar each supported adjacent its ends and intermediate its ends by supports adapted for use with heddles having C-shaped heddle bar eyes to permit unlimited lateral heddle movement intermediate the ends of the bars, and a plurality of heddles mounted on said bars, said heddles being of the construction specified in claim l with said olset of alternate heddles being in opposite directions.

3. A harness provided with two heddle sets as dened in claim 2 wherein the two .setsv are vertically oiset with respect to one another. 

